Jena Doctoral Program in Economics (JDPE)

The program comprises various elements, including foundation courses in microeconomics, macroeconomics, and econometrics, specialized courses in various fields of economics, soft skills training, individual presentation opportunities, and active participation in seminars and conferences.

The curriculum is primarily based on the Ph.D. courses offered by the CGDE. Additionally, our students can enhance their education by enrolling in doctoral-level courses offered within existing faculty programs and through the FSU Graduate Academy. The JDPE acknowledges the benefits of external courses and summer schools in enhancing students' academic growth. However, approval for including these external courses is contingent upon consultation with the student's academic supervisor and the JDPE director.

Doctoral students are required to accumulate a total of 36 credit points (CP) in five different categories:

• Foundation  Area (12 CP):  This area consists of three foundation courses, each comprising three modules: Econometrics I, II, III; Microeconomics I, II, III; Macroeconomics I, II, III. Each module is worth 3 CP. Students are required to complete at least four modules in total, selected from the nine available. These modules must be distributed across at least two different foundation courses. Furthermore, within each chosen foundation course, students must complete at least two modules.
• Specialization Area (6 CP): In the specialization area, students collect credits from IWH-DPE topic track modules (each worth 1,5 CP) or CGDE special courses (each worth 3 CP). In addition, Summer Schools or equivalent internal or external PhD courses may also be credited toward this area, subject to approval by the JDPE Director.
• Personal Qualification Area (2 CP): Students earn 2 CP through soft-skill training, which can be fulfilled by either attending the CGDE Personal Qualification Workshop or similar internal or external soft-skill courses. Course equivalences must be approved by the JDPE director.
• Presentations (4 CP): The presentation component requires doctoral students to disseminate their research findings in internal and external settings, such as seminars, workshops, or conferences. This requirement includes two presentations, at least one of which must be held outside the student's home university or institution.
• Elective (12 CP): The remaining 12 CPs can be earned through various activities. These activities may include teaching a course, attending a course on teaching professionalization, taking additional courses or modules from the foundation and the specialization area, or engaging in additional internal and external presentations. However, it is important to note that the total number of creditable presentations, excluding those outlined in the section Presentations, is limited to three, equivalent to 6 CP.

Ph.D. students must actively participate in internal and external research seminars, including the Jena Economics Research Seminar and the Jena Economics Research Workshops, or similar events. Likewise, students are encouraged to participate in the Annual CGDE Doctoral Workshop. Additionally, the successful completion of the seminar on good scientific practice, offered by the Jena Graduate Academy, is expected.

A detailed overview of the course program is available herepdf, 58 kb · de.

Our program does not charge tuition fees. Typically, students in our program secure financial support for living expenses by taking on research and teaching assistant positions within the Faculty of Economics and Business Administration. Additionally, we support applicants seeking external scholarships such as those provided by DAAD or similar organizations. It is important to note that our program does not offer its own scholarships.

For doctoral candidates seeking a research and teaching assistant position within the Faculty of Economics and Business Administration, the application process is managed directly through the specific research units where these positions are located. If you have successfully secured the position and wish to enroll in the Jena Doctoral Program in Economics, please notify Susanne Büchner at susanne.buechner@uni-jena.de.

For all other candidates interested in applying to the program, please compile the following documents into a single PDF file and submit it to Susanne Büchner at susanne.buechner@uni-jena.de:

• A completed application formpdf, 80 kb · de
• Your CV
• A letter of motivation in which you outline the anticipated benefits of participating in the program, your research experience, abilities, and interests
• Copies of your academic certificates (please specify the grading system's range, highest and lowest possible grades for your final grade)
• A copy of your master's thesis or an equivalent work

In addition to your application package, please ensure that we receive at least two letters of recommendation from academic instructors who can assess your research capabilities. These letters should be sent directly to us by the referee via email to Susanne Büchner at susanne.buechner@uni-jena.de.

Please note that we do not require a formal English language certificate. Language proficiency will be evaluated during the interview.

For inquiries concerning the application process, please do not hesitate to contact Susanne Büchner at susanne.buechner@uni-jena.de.